This invention generally relates to a method and system for providing communications between a server or a remote customer station and a telephone switch that allows a server or customer station to control functionality of the telephone switch and receive status and confirmation information from the telephone switch.
This section is intended to introduce the reader to various aspects of art that may be related to the present invention that are described and/or claimed below. This discussion is believed to be helpful in providing the reader with background information to facilitate a better understanding of the various aspects of the present invention. Accordingly, it should be understood that these statements are to be read in this light, and not as admissions of prior art.
Suppressed ringing communication methods allow for a variety of data communications applications between an enhanced service provider, or server, and customer premises equipment, (CPE), generally a customer computer or similar electronic device or telephone. However, these known communication methods and systems have disadvantages because the network and data capability between the server or the CPE and the telephone switch is configured to meet the needs of the server or the CPE at the time the service is established (service provisioning) or during the call set up. There is no way to dynamically change this configuration during the call. Changing the communications configuration is even more challenging if the service provider is not local to the server, creating operational difficulties.
The data communication capabilities between the server and the CPE are defined by the server and telephone switch when the service is initially set up. Unfortunately, the needs of the server or of the CPE frequently change over time or may change in real time as a result of the application. Currently, changes are made manually in response to oral or written requests to the telephone company that controls the network switch. However, this method is cumbersome, inefficient and prone to human error and delay. It is also not responsive to real time events that may require immediate changes in the operations.
Suppressed ringing communication methods between a service provider and an end user are known in the art. For example, a suppressed ringing communication method for communicating with utility meters is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,189,694, entitled xe2x80x9cTelemetry Access Arrangementxe2x80x9d, which issued on Feb. 23, 1993 to Garland, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference. Suppressed ringing communications are communications that are initially set up without ringing the user""s telephone and are not affected by preset switch activated, or user selected, features impacting communication in either direction. After being initially set up, only data messages are sent or received by the service provider. After completion of the suppressed ringing call, the preset line features are returned their original end user set up state. Configuration parameters and features may not be modified during the call.
Referring to FIG. 1A, a prior communication system 10 has a server 12, such as a personal computer or workstation, connected through either a trunk 14, preferably a digital T1 trunk, to a central office switch (CO) 16. The CO 16 includes a protocol interface 18, preferably software-based, associated with a switch unit 20, such as a multiport telephonic CO switch. An exemplary CO switch is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,509,054, entitled xe2x80x9cCommunication Switching Systemxe2x80x9d and which issued on Apr. 16, 1996 to Garland, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated herein by reference. The CO 16 is interfaced to the CPE 22, via a regular, twisted-pair, plain-old-telephone service (POTS) line 24 and a suitable modem (not shown). Alternative transmission media may be employed, such as coax or fiber or digital communication services to the CPE.
In accordance with known protocol for establishing suppressed ringing data communications, the server 12 goes off-hook and transmits a wink start and some information. The information typically transmitted includes a key pulse signal (KP), CPE Transmission Indicator (CTI) information, billing number identification (ANI) information, a start signal (ST) and a four, five seven or ten digit directory number. The CTI is used by the CO 16 to identify the type and kind of devices that comprise the CPE 22. The ANI indicates the telephone billing number of the trunk 14. The KP signal indicates the start of a data string and the ST indicates the end of a data string. The switch unit 20 responds to this information by creating a communications link or path to the CPE 22 without ringing the line 24 or being affected by the features associated with the line 24.
The switch unit 20 translates the received directory number to identify the CPE 22 and sets up a connection between the trunk 14 and the line 24. The connection is made with suppressed ringing functionality. The server 12 transmits an alert signal to the CPE 22 requesting that data communications be established. In response, the CPE 22 sends an off-hook signal to the switch unit 20 and the switch unit 20 so notifies the server 12. All of this communication is merely to set up the communication path between the server 12 and CPE 22. A similar method may be used to alert the CPE to become active without requiring the CPE 22 to return an off-hook signal to the switch unit 20, commonly known as on-hook data transmission.
During the course of the single communication link, there is no flexibility or capability for features of the service to be modified, as discussed in previously cited U.S. Pat. No. 5,189,694. In U.S. Pat. No. 5,509,054, entitled xe2x80x9cCommunication Switching Systemxe2x80x9d to Garland, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference, a telemetry function indicator (TFI) is disclosed which indicates control information to the switch. In that system, the CTI information indicated whether the CPE was using on-hook or off-hook data transmission. TFI provides a vehicle for the server 12 to tell the switch unit 20 to connect to, for example, a busy line on a barge-in basis. The server 12 may thus require that the switch unit 20 alert the CPE 22 regardless of whether the line 24 is on-hook or off-hook.
The switch unit 20 receives information that a particular feature, or function, is to be performed and is given information (auxiliary data) to be used to perform the particular function, such as a xe2x80x98load broadcast listxe2x80x99 function. For a load broadcast list function, the switch unit 20 is preloaded with a list of telephone numbers on a broadcast list to call in response to receipt of the broadcast function. In this manner, the server 12 is able to connect to CPE associated with a plurality of different end users by having the switch unit 20 automatically setup a plurality of suppressed ringing communication paths.
In addition, the server 12 disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,509,054 could request that the switch unit 20 perform some functions. This could only be performed on a per call basis because multiple cells could not be handled in a single call setup. In these prior systems, call features, provided by the network switch, cannot be dynamically modified during a cell because the functional paths are predefined and are followed without variation. Once a call is set up, there can be no change to the switch operation effected by the server 12 or the CPE 22.
Accordingly, there is a need for a system and method for establishing suppressed ringing communications between a server and a CPE wherein the call features, provided by the switch, may be modified during the duration of the call.
A system and method in accordance with the present invention overcomes the aforedescribed limitations of prior systems wherein a remote customer station or server provides control signals to the switch to control selected functions after call setup and during the course of data communications and receives from the switch an indication of changes in status of the switch which occur in response to the control signals.
Certain aspects commensurate in scope with the originally claimed invention are set forth below. It should be understood that these aspects are presented merely to provide the reader with a brief summary of certain forms the invention might take and that these aspects are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. Indeed, the invention may encompass a variety of aspects that may not be set forth below. Since the following is for summary purposes only, none of the aspects present below should be considered essential to the present invention, which is solely defined by the appended claims.
In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, a method for establishing a call between a customer station and a telephone switch in a suppressed ringing protocol environment is provided. The method comprising the step of transmitting control messages from the customer station to the telephone switch during data communications of the call to control one or more functional capabilities of the telephone switch. The method may further comprise the step of transmitting status messages from the telephone switch to the customer station which are indicative of a status of the one or more functional capabilities of the telephone switch.
The control messages may be analog signals, or digital signals or any combination thereof. Additionally, the customer station may be a server, customer premises equipment or an end user. In order to provide a two level end user database permissions, the method may further comprise the steps of: providing a first code from the end user permitting the end user to control one or more of the functional capabilities; and providing a second code from the end user permitting the end user to provide data communications. The method may also comprise the step of generating a billing record relating to the communications. The billing record may be based on each of the control messages, each of the status messages, or any combination of both received by the telephone switch during the communications.
In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, a method for establishing a call connection between a customer station and a telephone switch comprises the steps of: accessing the telephone switch from the customer station to provide control messages to the telephone switch for controlling functional capabilities of the telephone switch and to receive status information from the telephone switch; establishing in a single call session initiated by the customer station, multiple operations of providing control messages, receiving status information and transmitting data messages; and creating a billing record for each transmission of the data messages within the single call session.
In accordance with yet another aspect of the present invention, a method is provided for establishing communications between customer premises equipment and a server through a switch unit having a protocol interface comprising the steps of: establishing a communication link between the server and the protocol interface; passing control messages from the server to the protocol interface to selectively modify functional capabilities of the switch unit associated with communications between the server and the customer premises equipment; and passing status messages representative of modifications in status of the switch unit resulting from the control messages from the switch unit and through the protocol interface to the server.
In accordance with a further aspect of the present invention, a method for establishing a call between a customer station and a sever through a telephone switch in a suppressed ringing protocol environment is provided. The method may comprise the steps of: transmitting control messages from the telephone switch to the customer station during a data communications of the call to control one or more functional capabilities of the customer station; and transmitting status messages from the customer station to the telephone switch which are indicative of a status of the one or more functional capabilities of the customer station.
The step of transmitting control messages may further comprise the step of: transmitting control messages from the telephone switch to the server during the data communications of the call to control one or more functional capabilities of the server; and transmitting status messages from the server to the telephone switch which are indicative of a status of the one or more functional capabilities of the server.
In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, a system is provided for establishing communications. A telephone switch has functional capabilities for establishing suppressed ringing communications and for generating status messages representative of status of the functional capabilities. A customer station requests that the telephone switch establish suppressed ringing communications and generates control messages for modifying the functional capabilities of the telephone switch. The telephone switch transmits the status messages to the customer station in response to the control messages to indicate modifications in the functional capabilities.
The telephone switch may comprise a software features program for modifying software capabilities of the telephone switch based on the control messages. The telephone switch may comprise a hardware control for modifying a hardware configuration of the telephone switch based on the control messages.